Jessica Claire Timberlake (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Biel ; born March 3, 1982) is an American actress. Biel began her career as a vocalist appearing in musical productions until she was cast as Mary Camden in the family drama series '' 7th Heaven'' (1996–2007). In 1997, Biel won the Young Artist Award for her role in the drama film ''

Ulee's Gold ''Ulee's Gold'' is a 1997 American Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Victor Nuñez and starring Peter Fonda. Co-stars include Patricia Richardson, Christine Dunford, Tom Wood (actor), Tom Wood, Jessica Biel, J. Kennet ...

''. She received further recognition for her lead role as Erin Hardesty in the horror film remake '' The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'' (2003). Biel has since starred in '' The Rules of Attraction'' (2002), '' Blade: Trinity'' (2004), '' Stealth'' (2005), '' The Illusionist'' (2006), '' I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry'' (2007), ''

Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring a Christian martyrs, martyr named Saint Valentine, Valentine, and ...

'' (2010), ''

The A-Team ''The A-Team'' is an American Action television, action television series that ran on NBC from January 23, 1983, to March 8, 1987, about a fictional team of former United States Army Special Forces who work as mercenaries while on the run from ...

'' (2010), ''

New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve refers to the evening, or commonly the entire day, of the last day of the year, 31 December, also known as Old Year's Day. In many countries, New Year's Eve is celebrated with dancing, eating, drinkin ...

'' (2011), '' Total Recall'' (2012), and '' Hitchcock'' (2012). In 2017, Biel was the executive producer and star of the

USA Network USA Network (or simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Media Group division of Comcast's NBCUniversal. It was launched in 1977 as Madison Square Garden Sports Network, one of the first national sports ...

limited drama series '' The Sinner'', for which she received nominations for a

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Janua ...

and a

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Owned and operated by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the P ...

for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie.

Early life and education

Jessica Claire Biel was born on March 3, 1982 in Ely, Minnesota, to Kimberly (

Conroe), a homemaker and spiritual healer, and Jonathan Biel, a business consultant and

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

worker. Her paternal great-grandfather was the son of

Hungarian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Hungary dates back to at least the Kingdom of Hungary, with some records even predating the Hungarian conquest of the Carpathian Basin in 895 CE by over 600 years. Written sources prove that Jewish communities lived i ...

immigrants, which she discovered on the show '' Who Do You Think You Are?''; she also has German, French, English, and Scandinavian ancestry. Biel's family moved frequently during her childhood, living in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, and Woodstock, Illinois, before finally settling in

Boulder, Colorado Boulder is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city in Boulder County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the most ...

. While growing up, Biel played soccer and trained as a level six gymnast. From 2000 to 2002, she attended

Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts, United States, with additional facilities in Boston and Grafton, as well as Talloires, France. Tufts also has several Doctor of Physical Therapy p ...

in Medford, Massachusetts.

Career

Beginnings (1991–2002)

Biel initially trained to be a vocalist. At age nine, she appeared in several musical productions in her hometown, playing lead roles in productions such as ''

The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, '' The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. ...

'' and ''

Beauty and the Beast "Beauty and the Beast" is a fairy tale written by the French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in (''The Young American and Marine Tales''). Villeneuve's lengthy version was abridged, rewritten, and publish ...

''. At 11 she participated in a competition sponsored by the International Modeling and Talent Association in Los Angeles where she acquired an agent and professional talent manager. She began modeling for print advertisements and appeared in commercials for products such as Dulux Paint and Pringles. In her film debut, Biel played the character Regrettal, a lead role in the ambitious musical film ''It's a Digital World'', produced and directed by Paul Greenberg. At age 14, after auditioning for several television pilots, Biel was cast as Mary Camden, the oldest daughter and second-oldest child in the family drama '' 7th Heaven''. Biel landed her first feature film role as Peter Fonda's granddaughter in the critically acclaimed drama ''

'', released in 1997. Her performance earned her a Young Artist Award. In spring 1998, during a break from filming ''7th Heaven'', she co-starred in '' I'll Be Home for Christmas'' with Jonathan Taylor Thomas as his character's love interest. When she was 17, she posed for a risque photo shoot that appeared in the March 2000 issue of ''

Gear A gear or gearwheel is a rotating machine part typically used to transmit rotational motion and/or torque by means of a series of teeth that engage with compatible teeth of another gear or other part. The teeth can be integral saliences or ...

''. Producers of ''7th Heaven'' were outraged and brought legal action against ''Gear''. She later expressed regret for doing it, claiming she had been used and that she had been shown different pictures from those published. In 2001, Biel played the love interest of Freddie Prinze, Jr. in the baseball-themed film '' Summer Catch''. In 2002, she starred as promiscuous college student Lara in the ensemble film '' The Rules of Attraction'', an adaptation of the

Bret Easton Ellis Bret Easton Ellis (born March 7, 1964) is an American author and screenwriter. Ellis was one of the literary Brat Pack (literary), Brat Pack and is a self-proclaimed satirist whose trademark technique as a writer is the expression of extreme acts ...

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

. The movie received mixed reviews, became a box-office hit, and has since gained a cult following.

Rise to prominence (2003–2012)

Biel was cast in her first top-billing role in '' The Texas Chainsaw Massacre''. Although the film met with negative reviews, it was a commercial success, scoring the number-one spot in its opening week and going on to earn more than $80 million in the U.S. In 2003, Biel began work on the third installment of the ''Blade'' film series, '' Blade: Trinity''. Despite negative reviews, ''Trinity'' was a box office hit, grossing $150 million worldwide. After finishing it in 2004, she headed to Australia to shoot the action-thriller '' Stealth''. Biel also appeared in the 2004 film '' Cellular''; played a supporting role, Ellen, in the

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a sub-genre of comedy and Romance novel, romance fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount all obstacles. Ro ...

'' Elizabethtown'' (2005); and starred in the indie film ''

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

''. In 2005, ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...

'' named her the " Sexiest Woman Alive" in a six-part series with each month revealing a different body part and clue to the woman's identity. In 2006, Biel played a turn-of-the-century duchess in the period piece '' The Illusionist'', co-starring Edward Norton and Paul Giamatti. While her casting was met with a mixed response, her performance was ultimately praised. James Berardinelli of ''Reelviews'' called her the "film's real acting revelation", while Todd McCarthy of '' Variety'' wrote, "Handily employing a refined English accent where the others lay on a light Austrian veneer, Biel is entirely stunning enough to fight to the death over." Biel played an

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

veteran A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in an job, occupation or Craft, field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in the military, armed forces. A topic o ...

in the 2006 film '' Home of the Brave'', a drama about soldiers struggling to readjust to society after facing the hardships of war. In ''

Next NeXT, Inc. (later NeXT Computer, Inc. and NeXT Software, Inc.) was an American technology company headquartered in Redwood City, California that specialized in computer workstations for higher education and business markets, and later develope ...

'' Biel starred alongside Nicolas Cage and

Julianne Moore Julie Anne Smith (born December 3, 1960), known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress and children's author. Prolific in film since the early 1990s, she is known for her portrayals of emotionally troubled women in independent ...

. She appeared in the summer comedy '' I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry'', co-starring

Adam Sandler Adam Richard Sandler (born September 9, 1966) is an American actor, comedian, producer and screenwriter. Primarily a comedic leading actor in films, List of awards and nominations received by Adam Sandler, his accolades include an Independent Sp ...

and Kevin James. In late 2007, Biel signed on to play a

stripper A stripper or exotic dancer is a person whose occupation involves performing striptease in a public adult entertainment venue such as a strip club. At times, a stripper may be hired to perform at private events. Modern forms of stripping m ...

in '' Powder Blue'', alongside Forest Whitaker (who also produced the film), Ray Liotta and Patrick Swayze. In 2007, ''

Stuff Stuff, stuffed, and stuffing may refer to: *Physical matter *General, unspecific things, or entities Arts, media, and entertainment Books *''Stuff'' (1997), a novel by Joseph Connolly *''Stuff'' (2005), a book by Jeremy Strong Fictional c ...

'' magazine's named her No. 1 on their "100 Sexiest Women". At the start of 2008, Biel shot '' Easy Virtue'', an adaptation of the play by

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

. Like the play, the film is set in the 1920s and Biel plays young widow Larita, who impulsively marries John Whittaker in France and must face her disapproving in-laws on returning to England. The film premiered in September 2008 at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...

. Critics praised Biel for her performance, with Todd McCarthy of '' Variety'' saying Biel "more than kept up" with veterans Kristin Scott Thomas and Colin Firth and praising her "sparkling" performance. ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' described her performance as "an irresistible force of nature — a kind, witty, supremely intelligent and beautiful woman who ... is capable of rejoinders that thoroughly undercut her opponent's withering criticism." Biel also performed two songs on the film's soundtrack, " Mad About the Boy" and " When the Going Gets Tough". In 2009, Biel lent her voice to the animated science fiction film '' Planet 51''. Biel performed the role of Sarah Brown with the

Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic (LA Phil) is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. The orchestra holds a regular concert season from October until June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall and a summer season at the Hollywood Bowl from ...

in a fully staged concert production of '' Guys and Dolls'' during the 2009 season at the Hollywood Bowl. On the last night, she received a rousing standing ovation from 17,000 people. She subsequently landed a part in

Lincoln Center Theater The Vivian Beaumont Theater is a Broadway theatre, Broadway theater in the Lincoln Center complex at 150 West 65th Street on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Operated by the nonprofit Lincoln Center Theater (LCT ...

's two-week-long workshop of the musical version of the

Pedro Almodóvar Pedro Almodóvar Caballero (; born 25 September 1949) is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and author. His films are distinguished by Melodrama (film genre), melodrama, irreverent humour, bold colour, glossy décor, quotations from popular c ...

film '' Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown'', along with

Salma Hayek Salma Valgarma Hayek Pinault ( , ; ; born September 2, 1966) is a Mexican and American actress and film producer. She began her career in Mexico with starring roles in the telenovela ''Teresa (1989 TV series), Teresa'' (1989–1991) as well a ...

. In 2010, Biel starred in the large ensemble cast film ''

'' and in the '' A-Team'', based on the

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

as Capt. Charissa Sosa. In 2011, she appeared in ''

'', directed by ''Valentine's Day''s Garry Marshall. In 2012, Biel starred in the remake of the 1990 science fiction movie '' Total Recall'' alongside Colin Farrell and Kate Beckinsale. She portrayed actress Vera Miles in the biographical film '' Hitchcock'', based on Stephen Rebello's book '' Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho''. She also appeared in '' Playing for Keeps'' with Gerard Butler.

Independent film route and move into producing (2013–present)

Biel starred in the thriller film '' Emanuel and the Truth About Fishes'', which premiered at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

on January 18, 2013. In April 2008, Biel began working on the political satire '' Accidental Love'', with Jake Gyllenhaal. The film centers around a woman who accidentally gets a nail lodged in her head and travels to Washington, D.C. to fight for better health care. In May 2009, Biel spoke about the film's production turmoil, saying: "That was definitely an experience, something I could not say no to. I am a huge David O. Russell fan. It's just heartbreaking that so many people put so much work into this particular project only to have it sit there, unfinished." The film was released on

video on demand Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos, television shows and films Digital distribution, digitally on request. These multimedia are accessed without a traditional video playback device and a typica ...

on February 10, 2015, and received largely negative reviews from critics. In 2015, Biel starred in the independent drama '' Bleeding Heart'', in which she plays a yoga instructor named May who meets her biological sister Shiva ( Zosia Mamet), a sex worker, for the first time. The film premiered on April 17, 2015, at the

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by Tribeca Enterprises. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive programming. The festival ...

, receiving mixed reviews, though Biel earned praise for her performance. Richard Lawson of '' Vanity Fair'' commented: "Though she's not given too much to work with in terms of character, Biel plays May with appealing nuance, creating a low-key, bliss-based Angeleno, all light and airy and gentle and poised, who discovers within herself an untapped hardness and anger and strength... when Biel has to conjure up more profound emotions, she proves adept, and surprisingly subtle." Clayton Davis of ''AwardsCircuit.com'' also praised her performance, writing, "With an internalized and very subtle performance, Biel excels in her ability to find the very motivation of May." In 2016, Biel co-starred with

Patrick Wilson Patrick Joseph Wilson (born July 3, 1973) is an American actor. He began his career in 1995, starring in Broadway theatre, Broadway musicals. He received nominations for two Tony Awards for his roles in ''The Full Monty (musical), The Full Mont ...

(with whom she had worked on ''

'') in the thriller '' A Kind of Murder'', based on the novel '' The Blunderer'' by

Patricia Highsmith Patricia Highsmith (born Mary Patricia Plangman; January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character T ...

. She voiced the character Vix in the animated film '' Spark'', with Susan Sarandon and Hilary Swank, which was released in 2016. Biel also appeared in the drama '' The Book of Love'', based on the book '' The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea'', about an introverted architect ( Jason Sudeikis) who loses his wife (Biel) and sets out to help a teenager named Millie ( Maisie Williams). Biel also produced the project from its conception some years prior, and was directed by Bill Purple, who directed her in the short film '' Hole in the Paper Sky''. The film was released in January 2017. On August 2, 2017, Biel's eight-episode limited series murder mystery, '' The Sinner'', debuted on

. Biel is both executive producer and played the series' lead character Cora Tannetti. She stated that she moved into production so that she could develop projects with challenging and interesting roles rather than waiting for them to happen. Biel starred in and executive produced the 2022 true-crime drama miniseries ''

Candy Candy, alternatively called sweets or lollies, is a Confectionery, confection that features sugar as a principal ingredient. The category, also called ''sugar confectionery'', encompasses any sweet confection, including chocolate, chewing gum ...

'' on

Hulu Hulu (, ) is an American Subscription business model, subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as ...

. Biel is set to lead the upcoming sci-fi thriller ''Ursa Major'' directed by brothers Jonathan and Josh Baker. In May 2025, Biel was announced as one of the executive producers on the ''7th Heaven'' reboot in development at CBS Studios.

Personal life

In January 2007, Biel began dating singer-songwriter

Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, record producer, and dancer. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Prince of Pop", ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' honored him as the b ...

. They became engaged in December 2011 and married on October 19, 2012, at the Borgo Egnazia resort in

Fasano Fasano (; Bari dialect, Barese: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Brindisi, Apulia, southern Italy. It is the second most populated town in the province after Brindisi, with a population in 2021 of 39,026. History According to a folk ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. The couple have two sons. Alongside Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Biel publicly lobbied in June 2019 against California's vaccination bill that would limit medical exemptions from vaccinations without approval from a state public health officer.

Charitable causes and commercial enterprises

On July 18, 2006, Biel participated in a charity auction to raise medical funds for teen Molly Bloom, who was injured in a limousine accident. "I promise I'm a cheap date", Biel quipped in a pre-recorded video. John Schiffner of Fergus Falls, Minnesota, successfully bid $30,000 to have lunch with Biel. Biel and Schiffner lunched at The Palm restaurant in

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

, on August 18, 2006. In early 2007, Biel co-founded the Make the Difference Network with her father and another business partner, Kent McBride. In 2010, Biel climbed to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro with members of the United Nations Foundation to raise awareness of the global water crisis. That same year Biel earned a nomination for a Do Something Award. Biel teamed with nonprofit health care organization WomanCare Global to develop content that will provide girls with sex education. In 2021, Biel teamed up with Jeremy Adams, a natural products entrepreneur, and co-founder Greg Willsey, to launch Kinderfarms, a health and wellness brand for families.

Filmography

Film

Television

Music videos

Awards and nominations

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References

External links